2015 March - Pro Football Rumors

Packers Re-Sign B.J. Raji

March 31st, 2015 at 3:40pm CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 3:40pm: The Packers have officially announced their new deal with Raji in a press release.

MONDAY, 3:22pm: According to Rapoport (via Twitter), Raji and the Packers have agreed to terms on a one-year deal worth $3.5MM, with incentives that can increase the value to about $4MM.

10:24am: After reaching an agreement with Letroy Guion, the Packers also appear poised to retain another one of their free agent defensive tackles. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter) that B.J. Raji is expected to return to the Packers on a one-year contract. Earlier today, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com wrote that Green Bay had offered Raji a one-year deal worth less than $2MM.

Raji, 28, missed the entire 2014 campaign after tearing his right bicep during the preseason, but he stayed with the team throughout the season to rehab and should be back at full strength by training camp. The veteran has played in 76 games for the Packers since they drafted him ninth overall out of Boston College in 2009.

After spending several years as Green Bay’s nose tackle, Raji moved over to defensive end in the Packers’ 3-4 scheme during the 2013 season, and struggled with the transition. He had been expected to return to the nose tackle role last year before he landed on injured reserve.

Raji earned $4MM on his one-year deal with the Packers in 2014, so assuming he agrees to the terms reported by Demovsky, it looks like he’ll be accepting a sizable pay cut. However, it’s possible that his agreement with Green Bay will include incentives and/or per-game roster bonuses — because he didn’t play a single game last year, any per-game roster bonuses for Raji would be considered unlikely to be earned, meaning they wouldn’t initially count against the team’s cap.

Bill Huber of Packer Report initially reported last month that Raji would likely re-sign with the Packers.

Packers Re-Sign Letroy Guion

March 31st, 2015 at 3:39pm CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 3:39pm: The Packers have officially re-signed Guion, the team confirmed today in a press release.

MONDAY, 10:38am: Guion’s one-year deal with the Packers will be worth $2.75MM, a league source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

8:15am: The Packers and defensive tackle Letroy Guion have agreed to terms on a one-year contract that will keep Guion in Green Bay, reports Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Per Demovsky, the deal is expected to be officially finalized and signed tomorrow.

Guion, 27, had an effective first season with the Packers in 2014, starting all 16 games for the team and racking up 41 tackles to go along with 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble. However, he ran into some off-field trouble earlier this offseason, when he was pulled over for erratic driving — police found 357 grams of marijuana, $190K+ in cash, and an unloaded gun in his truck. Guion reached a plea deal last week and avoided prosecution.

Following the conclusion of his legal case, Guion reportedly visited the Seahawks on Friday. As I noted at the time, while many teams won’t let free agents leave the building without a contract, Seattle has a track record of bringing in players for visits and not signing them. That appears to be the case this time, as Guion will return to a Green Bay team that lost to the Seahawks in January’s NFC Championship game.

Guion’s previous one-year contract with the Packers was worth just under $1MM, and I’d expect his new deal to exceed that figure, even after his off-field incident. Financial terms of the deal aren’t yet known, however.

NFL Moves Key FA Deadline To May 12

March 31st, 2015 at 3:09pm CST by Luke Adams

The NFL has made an adjustment to its free agency calendar, moving up a key deadline from June to May 12, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

The date of June 1 had previously been important for a number of reasons, as I laid out last spring. For one, players released or traded after June 1 had their cap numbers spread across two years of their respective teams’ cap, rather than just one year, as I explained in detail in our glossary entry on the subject.

Additionally, free agents who remain unsigned heading into June 1 were no longer attached to draft pick compensation beginning in June, meaning teams could sign those players without worrying about potentially missing out on a compensatory draft pick the following year.

Going forward, the cutoff date will now be May 12 rather than June 1 for free agents no longer counting toward the compensatory pick formula. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reported last week that the league was considering making this change because it’s a win-win proposition — unsigned players get the opportunity to find a new home a few weeks earlier, and teams are able to get those players involved in their offseason programs sooner.

However, it doesn’t sound as if teams will have the opportunity to release players and spread out their cap hits across multiple years in May, unless they specifically designate them as post-June 1 cuts. It appears clubs will still have to wait until June 1 to take advantage of that CBA quirk.

Colts Sign Vincent Brown

March 31st, 2015 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

2:56pm: It’s a minimum salary deal for Brown, tweets Mike Chappell of RTV6.

2:38pm: The Colts have added another potential weapon to Andrew Luck‘s arsenal, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed wide receiver Vincent Brown to a new contract. Brown will get a one-year deal from the team, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter).

Brown, 26, spent three seasons in San Diego after being selected in the third round of the 2014 draft, and had a nice season in 2013. The San Diego State product set career-highs in receptions (41) and receiving yards (472), but lost his grip on a roster spot during the preseason in 2014, ultimately receiving an injury settlement from the Chargers. Brown signed with the Raiders in September, but played sparingly for Oakland in ’14, catching 12 balls for 118 yards in seven contests.

If Brown still has some upside, Indianapolis could be a good spot for him to realize that potential, with Luck throwing him the ball. The Colts signed Andre Johnson earlier this month, and the veteran will see plenty of targets in 2015, but with Reggie Wayne not expected to return to the club, there should still be a number of balls to go around.

Financial terms of Brown’s agreement aren’t yet known, but I’d expect a minimum salary benefit contract.

Panthers Sign Jason Trusnik

March 31st, 2015 at 2:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Panthers have inked outside linebacker Jason Trusnik to a contract, the team announced today (via Twitter). It’s a one-year deal for the former Dolphin.

Trusnik, who is entering his age-31 season, spent his last four seasons in Miami, serving mostly as a special-teamer and a part-time player on defense. He saw his most action this past year, logging nearly 400 defensive snaps for the club and contributing on special teams as well. In total, Trusnik had 50 tackles, adding an interception and a pair of fumble recoveries for good measure.

Before signing with the Panthers, Trusnik paid a visit to the Jets.

Raiders Release Antonio Smith

March 31st, 2015 at 2:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raiders have parted ways with veteran defensive lineman Antonio Smith, releasing him from his contract today, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Smith had been entering the final year of his deal, so he’ll hit free agency a year early.

Smith, 33, spent five years with the Cardinals and then five years with the Texans before signing a two-year pact with the Raiders last March. That deal was worth $9MM, but didn’t include a signing bonus, so the Raiders should clear the veteran lineman’s entire $4MM cap hit from their books by cutting him.

A Pro Bowler in Houston, Smith played nearly 800 snaps at defensive tackle for the Raiders in 2014. His overall -3.9 Pro Football Focus grade (subscription required) wasn’t bad, though that final number comes from a combination of an excellent pass-rushing grade (+18.3) and a terrible grade against the run (-20.0). For the season, Smith posted an impressive 43 quarterback pressures, and I’d expect him to generate some interest from teams in need of an interior pass rusher.

49ers To Re-Sign Desmond Bishop

March 31st, 2015 at 1:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Looking to add some depth to their linebacker corps, the 49ers have agreed to terms on a one-year deal with Desmond Bishop, reports Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (via Twitter). Bishop, a Bay Area native, will return to the team after signing with San Francisco last December.

Bishop, 30, spent the first six years of his NFL career in Green Bay, emerging as one of the team’s starting linebackers in 2010 and 2011. The former sixth-round pick racked up more than 100 tackles in each of those seasons, totaling eight sacks, 10 passes defended, and four forced fumbles in those two combined years. However, injuries have since derailed his career. Bishop suffered a ruptured hamstring in 2012 while with the Vikings, and in 2013, his season was cut short after four games thanks to an ACL tear.

In 2014, Bishop signed with the Cardinals but didn’t see much action in Arizona. After he was released by the Cards for a second time, he caught on with the Niners in December and appeared in two games for San Francisco, logging a pair of tackles.

Another year removed from his season-ending injuries in 2012 and 2013, Bishop could be poised to play a little more for the Niners in 2015. The veteran shouldn’t be penciled in for a major role, but the club will need some help at the inside linebacker spot after having both Patrick Willis and Chris Borland announce their retirement from the NFL this offseason.

Eagles Sign Miles Austin

March 31st, 2015 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 12:50pm: The Eagles have officially signed Austin, the team announced today (via Twitter).

MONDAY, 4:23pm: The Eagles and Austin have agreed to a one-year deal worth $2.3MM, with another $700K available in incentives, tweets Rapoport. Presumably, the agreement is still pending a physical, which isn’t necessarily a given, considering Austin’s history of health issues.

10:40am: Assuming all goes well with his visit and his physical this week, Austin is expected to sign a contract to join the Eagles, according to Rapoport (via Twitter).

9:40am: One former Cowboys offensive playmaker has notably joined the Eagles this offseason, as DeMarco Murray made the jump from Dallas to Philadelphia. Now, the Eagles are eyeing another free agent who used to play for their division rivals. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), veteran wideout Miles Austin is set to visit Philadelphia this week.

Austin, of course, isn’t the same sort of impact player Murray is at this stage of his career. However, he had a decent bounce-back season in Cleveland last year, catching 47 balls for 568 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games. The 30-year-old has racked up 348 catches for more than 5,000 yards during his nine-year NFL career, earning a pair of Pro Bowl nods during his time with the Cowboys.

The Eagles are in the market for receiving help after seeing Jeremy Maclin leave for Kansas City earlier this month. Jordan Matthews appears poised to take on a more significant role for the club in 2015, and Chip Kelly has praised the wide receiver depth in this year’s draft class. Still, besides Matthews, Riley Cooper is the only wideout currently under contract who has more than 10 career receptions, so Philadelphia could use another veteran.

Poll: Best Major Free Agent Signing Of 2015?

March 31st, 2015 at 12:12pm CST by Luke Adams

A year ago, no free agent received more fully guaranteed money than the $20MM offensive tackle Branden Albert got from the Dolphins. However, this time around, several big-name players blew by that threshold, with eight players in total matching or surpassing $20MM in fully guaranteed money, per Over The Cap. Here’s the full list of those signees, along with the terms of their new deals:

Ndamukong Suh, DT (Dolphins): Six years, $114.375MM. $59.955MM guaranteed.
Darrelle Revis, CB (Jets): Five years, $70MM. $39MM guaranteed.
Charles Clay, TE (Bills): Five years, $38MM. $24.5MM guaranteed.
Jeremy Maclin, WR (Chiefs): Five years, $55MM. $22.5MM guaranteed.
Byron Maxwell, CB (Eagles): Six years, $63MM. $22MM guaranteed.
Devin McCourty, S (Patriots): Five years, $47.5MM. $22MM guaranteed.
Julius Thomas, TE (Jaguars): Five years, $46MM. $21MM guaranteed.
Kareem Jackson, CB (Texans): Four years, $34MM. $20MM guaranteed.

We’ll take a closer look in the coming weeks at how exactly these contracts stack up against one another, and which players made out the best, but for now, we’re just concerned with evaluating which teams made the best and worst decisions among this group.

What do you think? Is the $60MM in guaranteed salary for Suh a mistake for the Dolphins, or does his talent ensure that he’ll be well worth the money? Perhaps one of the other players on the list represents a more worthwhile investment for his team? Which of these players was the best major free agent signing of the offseason? Cast your vote below and let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

Bears Notes: J. Rodgers, Ball, McDonald

March 31st, 2015 at 11:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Bears were one of the league’s most active teams in free agency a year ago, and while they likely won’t earn that somewhat dubious honor again in 2015, the team added Pernell McPhee early and has continued to sign players since then, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Our latest round of Bears notes includes details on a couple contracts for those free agent signees, as well as an update on another potential target….

Free agent running back Jacquizz Rodgers is visiting the Bears, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Running back is one position where the team certainly doesn’t need a starting lineup upgrade, but Rodgers, a former Falcon, is a versatile back who could be a nice backup for Matt Forte. During his four years in Atlanta, the 25-year-old carried the ball 305 times and added 155 receptions.
Alan Ball‘s one-year deal with the Bears is worth $3MM, including a $1MM signing bonus and a $1.95MM base salary, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The Panthers’ offer to Ball had a base value of $2MM, so it’s no surprise that the cornerback turned it down in favor of the Bears’ proposal.
The Bears received some criticism when they signed Ray McDonald, who was the subject of domestic violence allegations last year. However, the team certainly didn’t invest heavily in the defensive lineman. Per Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter links), McDonald’s one-year deal with Chicago is worth $1.05MM, with no guaranteed money. The former Niner can earn up to $1.5MM with incentives.
Bleacher Report draft guru Matt Miller tweets that he doesn’t think the Bears need to draft a defensive player with the seventh overall pick, suggesting that taking the best player available would be the team’s best move.